DIY – Homemade Speedlite “Snoot”

This guest post was written by Leann Wrightsman, a photo DIY-er extraordinaire. This snoot making article has one of the best effort to result ratio. You usually use a snoot when you want only a small part of a scenario lighten, while keeping the rest of the scenario light free see the picture at the end of this article.

In this article Leann Wrightsman will show you how to make a “Snoot” for your speedlight flash with easy to find items you may even have around the house!

First, get the stuff you need- Get gaffer’s tape and foam paper. Look in the craft supply area of Hobby Lobby or Michaels to find the foam paper, and if you have friends at the local theater (plays not movies) you can often get a bit of Gaffers tape at no charge. Else, check with a camera shop that carries lighting supplies.

Then make the first incision and “stitch” – Cut the foam board so the “long” side will fir around your flash; then Place the gaffer’s tape smoothly along the short end of the foam paper.

Now tube it – Make a tube out of the foam paper, butt the ends of the foam paper together firmly for a nice even join.

Snoot it – Put it on your speedlight and call it a snoot! The snoot should fit snugly on the end of the speedlight.

Enjoy it – You’ll be able to get a nice narrow light pattern, customizable by squeezing the snoot.

If you are in to snoots, checkout Rui M Leal’s lighting mods blog. He has some great snoots here, here and here. No wonder he made it into my fav list.

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Allen Mowery is a commercial and lifestyle photographer, pseudo-philosopher, and wannabe documentarian killing time amidst the rolling hills of Central Pennsylvania. When not shooting client work or chasing overgrown wildlife from his yard, he loves to capture the stories of the people and culture around him. You can check out his work on his website or follow along on Facebook, Twitter (@allenmowery), and 500px.

JP Danko is a commercial photographer based in Toronto, Canada. JP
can change a lens mid-rappel, swap a memory card while treading water, or use a camel as a light stand.

Laya Gerlock is a Portrait and Product photographer based in the Philippines. His passion is teaching and sharing his knowledge in Photograpy and has been doing this for 6 years. You can follow his work on his web page, follow him on Flickr and if you happen to come by Cubao, Quezon City (To Manila, Philippines) he gives a great workshop!

Maaz Khan started off teaching himself photography with a disposable Kodak camera he got for his 7th birthday. His main weapons of choice are now the 5D Mark II, and an LG G2 when mobility calls.

Stefan Kohler is a conceptual photographer, specialized in mixing science, technology and photography. He is one of the founders of Kamerakind, based in Traunstein, Southern Germany. You can follow him on Facebook or on 500px.com

Tiffany Mueller is a photographer based in Hawi, Hawaii. You can follow her Twitter here and her personal life here.